Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | |||||
| 1900805 | 11/02/2005 | 1900805A | 10017651 | Revised power steering system bleeding procedures. *sc | 11/14/2005 |
| 1901004 | 11/29/2004 | 10011958 | Power steering fluid contamination. *tt | 02/08/2005 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | |||
| 11/09/2011 | 62334 | 1 | |
| Car suddenly turned left on 6-lane busy street, accelerated, crossed 2 lanes on left, immediately accelerated & hit 6-lane highway divider at 45 degree angle.. bounced up. perched there for a awful second then tipped down on opposite road. engine still maxed & uncontrollable.. car turned gently over on roof because engine still at max. turned it off fearing fire. wife and i sat there upside down in our belts till the emts came. researched on internet & found articles by at least 3 jeep dealers sternly telling drivers to get their rear differential pinion gears adjusted if they mounted oversize tires. our car had oversized tires when we bought it used. no jeep company warnings. were issued jeep or by dealer. found 1 terrifying article of a driver who slid to the left without steering control and was struck by an oncoming truck. i've driven about 2 million miles without ever being chg'd w/contributing to an accident.. *tr | |||
| 11/09/2011 | 62334 | ||
| Car suddenly turned left on 6-lane busy street, accelerated, crossed 2 lanes on left, immediately accelerated & hit 6-lane hiway divider at 45 degree angle.. bounced up. perched there for a awful second then tipped down on opposite road. engine still maxed & uncontrollable.. car turned gently over on roof because engine still at max. turned it off fearing fire. wife and i sat there upside down in our belts till the emts came. researched on internet & found articles by at least 3 jeep dealers sternly telling drivers to get their rear differential pinion gears adjusted if they mounted ovesize tires. our car had oversized tires when we bought it used. no jeep company warnings. were issued jeep or by dealer. found 1 terrifying article of a driver who slid to to the left without steering control and was struck by an an oncoming truck. i've driven about 2 million miles without ever being chg'd w/contibuting to an accident.. | |||
| 07/22/2009 | 40000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 jeep liberty. the contact stated that while her vehicle was parked in a residential driveway, she noticed something leaking from the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. the dealer stated that they had to replace the rack and pinion. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 40,000 and the current 52,000. | |||
| 07/22/2009 | 40000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 jeep liberty. the contact stated that while her vehicle was parked in a residential driveway, she noticed something leaking from the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. the dealer stated that they had to replace the rack and pinion. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 40,000 and the current 52,000. kmj | |||
| 07/22/2009 | 40000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 jeep liberty. the contact stated while her vehicle was parked on her drive way she notice something leaking from the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. the dealer stated that they had to replace the rack and pinion. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was contacted was not contacted. the failure mileage was 40,000 and the current 52,000.jp | |||
| 05/29/2012 | 82000 | ||
| I attempted to start the car but the starter wouldn't turn over. i checked the fuses and relays for the iginition system, and everything was ok. i had to have the car towed to the dealer. the dealer told me that the entire steering column had to be replaced, because 2 tabs which held the ignition switch were broken. i've searched online sites and find that there seems to be all kinds of problems with the steering column and ignitions switches on the jeep liberty. cost of this minor repair $600 plus towing. mileage 82k. | |||
| 08/24/2011 | 68000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 jeep liberty limited. the contact was driving 45 mph when she lost control of the vehicle while making a turn. the steering wheel was turned in one direction, but the vehicle proceeded in the opposite direction; however, the contact was able maintain control of the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated the rear control track or control arm broke in half. the manufacturer was notified of the failure, but the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileage was 68,000. rvk | |||
| 08/24/2011 | 68000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2004 jeep liberty limited. the contact was driving 45 mph when the vehicle lost control when making a turn. the steering wheel was turned in one direction, but the vehicle proceeded in the opposite direction. the contact was able able to regain control of the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, and the testing failure diagnostic indicated the rear control track or control arm broke in half. the manufacturer was contacted, but the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileages were 68,000. rds | |||
| 08/10/2011 | 108000 | ||
| While driving down the main road in our town at 30mph driver heard a loud noise and then lost control of the steering in 2004 jeep liberty. the car was swerving and the driver had no control of the vehicle. the car went off the right shoulder of the road, scraped a metal mile marker and finally came to a stop. it has been determined that the left rear lower control arm had corroded and broken. this could have resulted in a very serious accident. | |||
| 12/22/2010 | 110000 | ||
| Vehicle started making crunching noises when going over bumps (dips, speed bumps/humps, railroad tracks) issue wasn't constant, tended to happen in the early mornings or late nights when the weather was colder. took the vehicle to a couple of mechanics with no findings. over time (02/01/2011) the vehicle started making a 'whining' noise when i make sharp right hand turns, again not every sharp right hand turn recreates the noise. i suspected power steering and or bushings could be an issue. today, 04/19/2011, vehicle is in shop for new tires and an oil change and an investigation into my complaints/suspicions. it's been discovered that there is a leak in my power steering pressure line and issues with my rack and pinion. on a side note, it's also time to replace my struts and shocks, however this is not part of the issue i've been experiencing, according to the mechanic. it was also brought to my attention that rack and pinion issues as well as power steering pressure line leakage issues are very common with this year/make/model. funnily enough, after lots of research and many phone calls to several other mechanics, the ps pressure line issue can be fixed but will most likely reoccur due to the hose not being able to handle the constant working pressure of 3000 psi. it seems i will now be looking for another part for my jeep that is being fabricated by an innovative individual that can do the job that jeep can't seem to figure out. (your window regulators need to be re-engineered as well) | |||
| 01/08/2011 | 102000 | ||
| While driving my 2004 jeep liberty i lost power steering. i was able to pull over and stop without incident. my steering rack and a power steering pressure line started leaking a lot of fluid resulting in loss of steering. i have since learned that this is a familiar problem to chrysler/jeep but there is no recall. sudden loss of steering is a serious problem and a recall should be considered. | |||
| 12/23/2010 | 124000 | ||
| I have had repeated problems with my 2004 liberty power steering. it appears that in very cold conditions the fluid leaks, maybe a shrinking gasket or seal? a seeping power steering line? the leak is at the fitting where it goes into the pump. it appears that the pressure from the pump is overpowering the o-ring in this fitting. unfortunately the leak went unnoticed until the system went dry. | |||
| 08/03/2009 | 58739 | 1 | |
| 2004 jeep liberty parked in parking garage. put key in ignition and had foot on brake. turned key on, put it in reverse and car accelerated out of control. put second foot on brake and tried to stop car. continued to accelerate. front drivers side tire caught a pillar and between that and practically standing on brake finally stopped car. took car to dealer in west valley ut. they could not repeat a diagnostic problem but did state the throttle body was dirty and cleaned it, along with $1575.95 worth of parts and labor. they replaced a bent steering gear. i had the car for 5 years and it never happened before. i wrote to chrysler and they sent me a check for half of the $1575.95 damage. they did not include any other paperwork. i called them and they again would not put anything in writing as to why they did not pay the entire amount. i strongly feel that it was a problem with the acceleration system and i should be reimbursed for the rest of the money. *tr | |||
| 06/26/2008 | 39310 | 1 | |
| Noticed that one power steering hose was pressing up against the plastic fan shroud. inspected the hose and found that sharp edge of the fan shroud was cutting into the hose. the hose developed a small leak of power steering fluid. had car into dealer for an oil change and asked the technician to inspect the hose. he confirmed that the shroud had cut into the hose. the hose was replaced and correctly located away from the shroud. this was a factory error in that the hose should not had been installed up against the plastic fan shroud. undetected the end result would have been an unexpected rupture of the hose and loss of power steering fluid,and steering ability. *tr | |||
| 11/10/2007 | 35000 | 2 | 02/21/2006 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 jeep liberty. while turning left at 5 mph, the vehicle began swerving from left to right. the contact lost control of the vehicle for fifteen seconds, but then it began to drive normally. the vehicle was not diagnosed by the dealer. the powertrain was unknown. the current mileage was 40,446 and failure mileage was 35,000. | |||
| 07/14/2007 | 38000 | 1 | 10/15/2006 |
| Loss of control of vehicle on entrance ramp to highway. vehicle pulled hard to the left, ended up coming to a stop facing on coming traffic. dealer couldn't find anything wrong, components involved in previous recall had already been replaced. *tr | |||
| 10/10/2006 | 16000 | 1 | 04/01/2006 |
| Dt*: the contact stated the vehicle lost control at 50 mph causing the vehicle to crash into an embankment. no injuries were sustained. a police report was taken. the contact expressed that the steering may have been the cause of the accident. the vehicle had not been to a service dealer. | |||
| 07/01/2004 | 32000 | 1 | 06/01/2004 |
| Hard constant pulling to right and grinding. some times a popping noise. *jb | |||
| 03/18/2006 | 40300 | 1 | 07/10/2004 |
| With no warning whatsoever, the left front lower ball joint on my vehicle broke while i was backing out of a parking space. the vehicle did not make any unusual noises nor were there any noticeable problems prior to the part breaking. when the ball joint broke, the wheel was also damaged. when i had the vehicle towed into a jeep dealer, i was informed that there was a recall on 2003 jeep liberty's for this problem, but no recall had been issued on the 2004 model. the mechanics at the dealership told me that this part should be expected to last much more than the 1 year, 9 months & 40,000 miles of my vehicle life. my extended warranty covered the cost of replacing both front ball joints (except for a $100 deductible) and i had to pay to replace the damaged wheel. ($317.55). we were away from home and had stopped for something to eat at the time this happened. just think of the possibilities if we were enroute or returning via the expressways at speeds between 55 and 70 mph. i have contacted daimler/chrysler customer care and they seem unwilling to discuss this possible defect on this vehicle. *jb | |||
| 07/23/2005 | 29000 | 08/28/2003 | |
| 1. transmission downshifts hard when decelerating to a stop 2. steering gear replaced 3. after item 2 , left (driver) side front lower ball joint broke. | |||
| 09/22/2003 | 1 | 10/10/2002 | |
| I discovered the recall on jeep liberty on your web page. i contacted jeep and they deny any knowledge of a recall. my vehicle was manufactured 7/02 and clearly falls into the specified time frame on your web page but jeep denies this. my vehicle was involved in an accident in september because my fiancee swerved to avoid a collision with another vehicle and all of a sudden she could not steer the vehicle. the body shop had to replace several steering components. i advised jeep of this and they still deny any knowledge of a recall and said that my vehicl ewas not involved in any recalls. *jb | |||
| STEERING - HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST - PUMP | |||
| 11/05/2004 | 2 | ||
| While shifting gears driver heard a loud knocking noise coming from the front. vehicle jerked, and it was taken to the dealer for inspection. mechanic determined that the steering power assist pump needed to be replaced and replaced it. however, the problem recurred, and the mechanic could not duplicate the problem. *ak | |||
| STEERING - HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||
| 04/05/2004 | 2000 | 4 | 12/29/2003 |
| Tl* - on 01/07/04 while driving on a wet road at a speed of 25 mph the contact's vehicle rear ended another vehicle. the contact lost control of the steering wheel. during another incident the contact's vehicle was stopped behind another vehicle that was making a right turn. once the vehicle turned, contact accelerated and suddenly the vehicle did a 360 spin, ending in a snow bank. at the time of the incident the road conditions were wet. in late february 2004 the contact experienced another incident, where the vehicle was going up a hill in wet conditions and as the vehicle rounded the curve at 40 mph contact lost control of the steering ,causing the vehicle to crash into a snow bank. on 03/09/04 contact took vehicle to the dealership in boise, id ,and they stated that the vehicle was fine, it just needed snow studs on the tires. on 04/05/04 while driving on a highway at 65 mph the vehicle became uncontrollable and steered toward the right side of a ditch, then going back into the highway at the same speed, and then going back into the ditch at 65 mph. at this point, the vehicle was in the ditch and hit the embankment of a driveway and catapulted off the driveway 20 feet into the air, where it hit a power pole head on. the vehicle caught on fire rolling over the a fence and continued to roll as it burned. the contact was unconscious, a bystander pulled the contact out the vehicle. | |||
| STEERING - LINKAGES - TIE ROD ASSEMBLY | |||
| 02/11/2007 | 84990 | 1 | 11/18/2004 |
| In dec 2006 i received and safety recall f23 with a request to register with the dealer for a problem that - quote: ...can result in a loss of steering control and could cause a crash without prior warning. serious _ serious enough for me to be concerned. i use this car not only to go to work every day but also to transport my children to events and so on. yet the service manager at patrick-jeep, rochester, ny says that i am on a waiting list (since dec 2006) but he is not able to get me in because chrysler has not issued any parts to correct this problem!? i find this unacceptable, that after a release of a recall, the parts for the necessary repair are not available. is there any outlook to get this fixed in the near future? wilhelm nagel. *nm | |||
| STEERING - RACK AND PINION | |||
| 02/22/2009 | 1 | ||
| Letter from ftc forwarding correspondence from congressman mchugh on behalf of constituent concerning his complaint with chrysler corporation regarding his jeep liberty. *nj the consumer stated the check engine light illuminated due to a faulty oxygen sensor and a crunching sound was heard whenever the consumer made a right turn. the dealer informed the consumer the crunching sound was a result of power steering fluid leaking and the repair would cost $825.00. a new rack and pinion gear and pressure lines were needed. the consumer stated the vehicle only had 40,000 miles, however the dealer advised that the vehicle would still be safe to drive. however, while driving, there was a noise coming from the front drivers side wheel well. just before the consumer could exit the highway, the left front wheel fell off the vehicle. the plastic fender above the dislodged wheel was ripped away. *jb | |||
| STEERING - WHEEL AND HANDLE BAR | |||
| 08/10/2011 | 108000 | ||
| While driving down the main road in our town at 30mph driver heard a loud noise and then lost control of the steering in 2004 jeep liberty. the car was swerving and the driver had no control of the vehicle. the car went off the right shoulder of the road, scraped a metal mile marker and finally came to a stop. it has been determined that the left rear lower control arm had corroded and broken. this could have resulted in a very serious accident. | |||
| 06/15/2011 | 98509 | ||
| The rear trail arm rusted through and fractured making the jeep nearly impossible to control. i had to call a tow truck. | |||
| 02/06/2011 | 105000 | ||
| The car did not feel right when i was driving home one evening and the whole back end jumped to the right when going over bumps or traffic passed my car.i got off the freeway and as i turned a corner the whole back end just slid and the vehicle was hard to keep control of. i had to drive 10 mph on city streets to get home and the car was difficult to control, it wanted to keep sliding to one side or the other. i found, on getting home, the rear lower control arm had rotted out and failed. it looked as though it had been in salt water for 25 years. if i had been at freeway speeds when it failed there is no doubt in my mind it would have caused an accident and very likely a fatal accident to me. i have seen 20 year old cars that do not have this kind of rot on critical parts like this and feel there is no way this should of happened on a 7 year old car. i have spoken to chrysler and they will not help me on the repair as it is out of warranty but the real concern is to the pre-mature failure of this critical part. i have kept the part they removed if anyone would care to inspect it. i hope this may help other owners inspect this part and prevent a serious accident. i hope someone from the nhtsa contacts me so i can further express my concerns. | |||